July 17 Huayhuash ​

July 17 Huayhuash

We rose early to catch the sunrise reflected in the mountains and the lake. Much to everyone’s disappointment it was a cloudy morning and no sunrise happened.

We left camp and hiked individually or in pairs along the lake. While walking I heard and saw a avalanche on Suila Grande. I also saw two viscacha
which are like a rabbit and squirrel cross.

We hiked up the edge of a lateral moraine to view the a beautiful called Lake Suila with chucks os ice floating in it. It came an avalanche like the one that I saw - maybe the one that I saw.
From there we started our hike up the pass. It was grueling but we had some great views of glaciers and beautiful lakes. We stopped at a vista point and took some amazing photos. We saw an amazing avalanche that made a waterfall of ice down the steep mountain.

I thought we were almost there but we had another hour to the pass. It was a slog. I was the fourth in our group to arrive and I passed someone not from our group on the way up. Not too bad ! The pass was 15700ft.

Our chef hiked with us carrying our lunch and metal dishes and utensils and a thermos of coca tea. Even weighed down he hike fast and made the pass look easy. We had fried rice for lunch. It was good.

We descended the pass and went by lakes and glaciers to arrive at our camp in a place called Huayhuash. We are sleeping even higher tonight above 14000ft.
At this point you may be wondering about cleanliness. We get a bucket of hot water to wash each day. It is a bit tricky because we are sharing a tent and you don’t want to get water in your tent anyway. I am doing my best
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July 16 Carhuacocha Lake ​

July 16 Carhuacocha Lake
Woke up to a beautiful sunrise. The sun lit up the face of the mountain. Tomorrow we will have sunrise and mountain and lake = magnificent. I surprised everyone and ate all my breakfast and most of my lunch. In fact instead of giving food away I took someone’s extra chocolate covered raisins.
Today we climbed up to a pas that was 15500 ft. It was off the traditional route but offerred amazing views of several peaks including Suila Grande (featured in Touching the Void) and Yerupaja (Peru’s second highest peak). We laughed so hard as we took panoramic photos with iPhones with ourselves at the start and then running and getting in the part of the photo as well.

We then went over a scree field and up and over another saddle giving us amazing views of three turquoise lakes. Grangrajanca, Suila and Quesillococha. We will be going by these lakes and tomorrow.

The views were amazing and the hiking group is amazing. They are all super fit. It is an adjustment for me to not be one of the strongest. I am in the middle. One of the women is struggling a bit with altitude sickness but making it. She was feeling discouraged but I said pat yourself on the back. How many people do you know back home that can climb to over 15000 ft?
Today I learned that diarrhea can be caused by altitude sickness. I had a bought before we left and it struck again today. Luckily I made it to a toilet (squat toilet). When we got back to camp our amazing guide gave me his secret remedy -coke. We will see if that works. I have Imodium if not
There are some interesting birds around the lake. I tried to get some photos of the ibis.
A fellow trekker and I did a little walk around before dinner. We met a couple of local women. They asked us if we wanted to buy a beer. We learned later that their husbands are donkey drivers.

Dinner was quinoa soup and spaghetti. It was yummy and I had no bathroom issues afterwards so I guess that is a good use for coke
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July 15 Mitucacha

We woke at 6 am and drank Coca tea. As I don’t really like any hot drinks I didn’t really care for it but tried to drink a little to help with the acclimatization.  We packed our stuff and at breakfast (granola, yogurt and bread). 

Then we set off towards the Cacanan Pass. It was a grind. The pass is at 4700m. According to the gps on my phone we were at 15300 ft. That is pretty darn high. One the way up we saw an animal that is a member of the rodent family that looks like a cross between a rabbit and a tree squirrel. 

As we descended the guide took us off the main route and over a couple of saddles to get some amazing views of Ninashanca and Jirishanca (the humming bird mountains) and Lake Mitucacha. The views were amazing and apparently it’s just the start. 

We saw several condors flying overhead.  We also saw small raptors called Cara Cara. At the same I saw an ibis like bird. Apparently it has been not seen in this area for a long time but a couple have returned this year. Later in the day I did see a Puna Ibis and an Andean Goose. 

I have a headache from the altitude. I think it will improve as we are lower now. 

I took ibuprofen and took a nap and things improved. Our amazing guide, Ricardo, fixed my sleeping bag zipper by swapping the none working top zipper with working bottom zipper. 

At dinner I swapped out a lot of my food. It has become a bit of a joke.  It turns out that they brought a whole bunch of avocados for me which I don’t like but my hiking mates are thrilled. 

July 14 Cuartelwain Camp

July 14 Cuartelwain Camp
Today we drove six hours to the base camp. The Cordillera Blanca come verse by glaciers was the first amazing view of our journey. It contains the largest peak in Peru -Huascan. This was followed by our first views of the Corderilla Huayhuash. It has the second largest peak in Peru. 

The crew contains two folks from Taiwan, one from Taiwan who lives in Chicago, one from France, one from the Netherlands, one from Spain and on from Singapore. 

We made camp in a pretty area and won’t begin hiking until tomorrow. It is very cold here. I am glad that I brought lots of clothes. 

We heard a horrible story about a group that got here and their donkey porters didn’t show up. Their trip will probably be canceled. It sounds like the agency screwed the last trek the opposite way and too many donkeys and their wranglers showed up. It can be a 14 Walk to get to the camp. Half of them were sent home probably with no money. This could be their way of striking. Too bad for the unwitting trekkers. 

Dinner was pumpkin soup and a veggie omelette. It was really nice.   

We all went to bed right after dinner. I put a bottle of hot water on my sleeping bag and it was quite warm.  My sleeping bag did have a small problem the zipper wasn’t working. The guide waxed it for me and it worked slightly better.

I had a good nights sleep

July 13 Lake Chirup

I had another early morning. I walked to the north end of town to meet Irene,another Huayhuash trekker. We took a collectivo to Pitek to hike up to Lake Chirup. It turned out to be a bus of hikers and it waited for us to hike and then brought us back to town. That was great. 

The hike was super steep and included a few cables reminiscent of my Europe adventures over the last couple of summers.  There was a bit of slippery snow and ice on the trail but is was generally ok

We met a few people on the trail and then had lunch with a fun group of people at the lake. We discussed hiking in Europe. (They were Swiss, Austrian, and Dutch). We also discussed food allergies and being a vegetarian. One thing that Inlive about Europe is that they label their menus as to vegetarian items and food allergy items. The Austrian cook did not like this at all. He told us a funny story about an ex who was allergic to everything and how he would put those items in her food to see. She never said anything until she ate the food made by the head chef that had no extras that she claimed allergies too. Then she said that she had a reaction.  

The views all day were amazing and it was a fun day. It was a shorter hike which was good because I am heading back to the hostel to pack. 

Tomorrow I head off to the Huayhuash trek and I don’t think I will have WiFi or cell service in my tent. Catch you again on July 24 

July 12 Lake 69

The day started super early. I was up at 4am. Things ran smoothly. Humberto, the guest house owner, walked me to the bus stop and I was picked up by a small bus and then transferred to a large bus. We drove around and picked up people and then headed out. There was a breakfast stop which was good to be able to use the bathroom. 

We then went up to Llanganuco which has the most beautiful turquoise color. It was a photo stop only. Then a bit more driving up to the trailhead past another pretty lake (no stop)

At the trailhead we got a talk about not pooping on the trail. It is illegal. The guide said he would post a YouTube video of offenders. 

The hike started out very mellow and then geared up to switchbacks. There were huge waterfalls that could be viewed when panting for breath due to the thin air. Next we walked through a high valley with a couple of small tarns. Next came some killer steep switchbacks. I had to stop to catch my breath many many times.   That was no surprise because the lake was at 15000 feet. Oh my

Lake 69 was also a beautiful color of blue.  As fate would have it I met up with Fabian and Jimmy there. I took a bunch of photos and hung out for a bit.  I met a German guy and we talked about hiking in Germany and the Dream Way Hike that I did last year. 

I took it easy on the down hill. My head hurt a bit - probably a touch of altitude sickness. 

We left late because some people got back late but but still arrived in Huaraz before I expected. I tried to find the vegetarian place that I went to the other day but I think it was closed. I randomly walked into a restaurant that posts its menu daily. In my poor Spanish I explained that I needed a vegetarian meal. They made me a veggie dish from eggs. It was quite good. I  going back tomorrow. 

My hands were cold today despite the fact that I had gloves. I love those gloves because I can still use my phone while wearing them. Back in town I bought some ALPACA gloves for about $3. Awesome 

Tomorrow a fellow Huayhuash hiker and I are going to hike Lake Chirup 

Lake Rajulcolta

July 10 Lake Rajulcolta

Today Fabian, his new friend Jimmy and I took a 4WD truck to the trailhead for our hike. 

The scenery was really lovely as we drove up through an ancient glacial valley. It was lined with small farms. The road was very sketchy so I was glad that we were in the 4WD.   I had to cover my eyes as dogs ran in front of the truck. I was sure we would hit one but it didn’t appear to occur. We also saw horses, sheep, chickens and cows along the way. 

The driver let us off at the gate.  We walked up a mellow trail to the lake. That might seem easy but the lake was at 13800 ft so there were times that I felt a little out of breath. The hike was about 10 miles. 

Jimmy found the hike to be pretty challenging. Later I found out that his bus only arrived that morning at 6am. Also he was carrying his laptop in his backpack. Since he didnt have a chance to get food Fabian and I shared with him. 

The lake overlooked by Glacier was so pretty. It was a really great hike.  We only saw one mountaineering camp and four day hikers. 

Tomorrow I head to Laguna 69 which promises to be a challenge. The agency could arrange it because there was some problem with the early morning pickup. (They have the same problem the day of the Huayhuash but I am going to walk to their office) 

I haven’t gotten a meal today but I am hoping to find something without much hassle. 

I bought my bus ticket to Lima for the flight home and got seat #1

Laguna Wilcacocha

Peru July 9 Acclimatization hike to Laguna Wilcacocha

A fellow Huayhuash trekker names Fabian and I decided to hike together to Lake Wilcacocha. We met at 9am at the central market and took a collectivo to the hike trailhead.  It was a steep hike up a wide track. It wasn’t marked but you could always hike up the road if you didn’t know how to go. I downloaded the map on Gaia and we were able to navigate up with no problem. 

Along the way we saw example is mud brick homes and small agricultural plots. There were expansive views to the valley and the snow capped mountains peaked out from time to time 

The lake was rather small but very pretty. I got some amazing reflection shots of the lake and the clouds. We walked around the lake and saw some rather startling things. The first was when loud music played at one of the jutting rock view points and people appeared to be dancing. Turns out they were filming a music video. 

We walked around the lake viewing the bird life. There were coots there and another long beaked bird that I didn’t recognize. Then the strangest thing we saw folks carrying a large inflatable boat up the path. They launched it and went i the lake which wasn’t bigger than a pond.  

Fabian and I walked down and caught a collectivo back to Huaraz.  From there we found a vegetarian place to eat. I got a cheese omelette.  Fabian got a three course meal for the same price but it was chicken. 

From there we went to the tour agency and I paid my balance.  We also booked a tour for tomorrow to Lake Rajucolta. The road there is very bad so we need to go in some type of four wheel drive. When we called it was booked but found another. However this guy wanted to charge more so the agency said we could go in a taxi but we might need to get out and push it at some places.   We decided to go for that but then the 4 wheel guy said there is  a spot that is impassable because we need to go straight up so we paid the higher price. It wasn’t that much. We got the driver for the day for 220 soles. That is about $70 of which I paid half. 

We went our separate ways after that. I was feeling kinda of headachy. Maybe from the altitude so I took a nap and some ibuprofen. I felt better when I woke up. I found a great piece of pie but no vegetarian food so I ate French fries for dinner. On the way back to the hostel I found a likely place for tomorrow. 

I also need to get my bus ticket to go back to Lima. I want to be sure to get one of those front seats. I will do that tomorrow when we get back 

Travel to Huaraz

Peru July 9 Travel to Huaraz

After several hours of sleep and a shower I catch a taxi to the bus station to take a luxury bus to Huaraz. The seats are supposed to be like first class airline capsules. I hope to catch up on any lost sleep there. It is a 7-8 hour trip to Huaraz. 

Adventures at the bus station 

1. I went to the ticket booth instead of the departure area 
2. I tried to enter the arrival area instead of the departure area
3. I didn’t realize they wanted more money to enter the departure area. 
4. I couldn’t find the departure platform because it was a VIP lounge 
5. I think I was supposed to check my large bag but they checked it at the gate 

However there was a soda machine that sold some form of Diet Coke in the VIP lounge.  I needed to show my passport when boarding and that went right over my head. A few notes about the bus are below

1. My day pack didn’t fit well but I can use the other little one that I brought next time
2. The bus had working usb charging ports (the plane did not)
3. The bus had a working touch screen with movies and books. Unfortunately all in Spanish but impressive none the less
4. I think there is supposed to be working WiFi but that doesn’t seem to be working. However I have cell service so I can do some things on my phone. 
5. Blanket (very nice) pillow and headphones provided

One funny thing that happened was that I couldn’t get to the bathroom. I couldn’t open the door out of our “cabin”. I had push the call button for the attendant who was on the second floor of the bus. He then showed me where the bathroom was. I am not sure if others had had the same problem but three our four people went right after me.  

For myself and everyone else who may take a VIP bus if you are long legged the front seats would be the best. I am going for that on the way back 

My guesthouse  was waiting for me at the bus stop which was great. They had a sign with my name. The place is on the edge of town but the people are super nice and it’s very clean. 

I met up with someone else on my trek for dinner and we organized a shirt acclimatization hike for tomorrow. 

The town is at 10000 ft and I could feel it tonight or I might just be tired from travel  

Sorry but images just don’t seem to be working from my phone

Peru Travel

I have packed far more than the last few summers. The main pack isn’t too heavy just very bulky. I also have my day pack and included a lightwieght pack for around town use.  I tried to take a selfie carrying all the gear but failed. I need practice with the  selfie stick. 

Security was so odd. A crazy man giving instruction regarding a sniffer dog. STOP GO DON’T STOP. Later he was yelling about something but I was through. 

I wait here at SFO  for my flight. I got here three hours early as the ticket said to but it is overkill. This is ubdoubtedly because I have a domestic flight first. 

Oh my just realized  that I still need to pay for the rest of my trip and I doubt they take credit cards since they didnt for my deposit.  I asked the flight attendebt where the ATM was and she sent me to another terminal. (On the way back I noticed one right by the gate LOL). It is a Wells Fargo. I decide to use a debit catd that I rarely use because it doesnt charge fees for using other bank atms. It is declined. Oops I fgure out I chose the wrong account type. Then it works but I get a call from the fraud dept. I called the bank to investigate. A phone call in Peru would be costly.  It was because I chose the wrong account but  I found out that my travel notice wasnt in the system. I had put in but I must have missed a step so all of this was a blessing in disguise. I put in my travel notice over the phone and now I am good to go 

I upgraded to premium economy for this first section of my trip. (My other choice was a middle seat). Maybe I will splurge and upgrade on other sections but I have aisle seats for all of those towards the front of the plane so maybe not

I wonder if there is anything else that I have forgotten????

The flight was late but the food wasn’t bad and I had a good seat with tons of legroom 

The hotel I am at may not be fancy but the guy picked me up at the airport, it was a ten minute drive and he is taking me to the bus station in the morning allowing me to get a little sleep.